General preening issues!

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supercowpony

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Ok, I have a piebald cob, 14.2hh to 15hh.
I just have some questions concerning keeping him smart:

Mane:
He HATES having his mane pulled, he has broken tying up rings before when having it done. He swings around and usually has to be twitched. His mane is extremely thick and double sided, he's got enough hair for two manes easily! Are there any really good combs out there, which brush and thin it at the same time? I won't cut it as this would only make the problem worse, I need something to stop it from getting thick.
I may consider hogging it, but if I ever wanted to grow it out again he would have a mohican for a while, which wouldn't look very smart..

Tail:
He has a very thick, mainly white tail. (never again!lol) It needs washing once a week, sometimes more to stop it from becoming brown! I have never tried pulling his tail, so I don't know if this would stop him from pooing in his tail, and I don't want to use the clippers to take the underneath off, as he's not great with clippers, and it would need doing quite a lot to stop it from becoming bristly. someone recommended putting baby oil on the underneath bit to stop mud/poo from getting in it, but I'm not sure about this, wouldn't it fry his skin in hot weather??


Also, on the back of one knee, he gets sore and scabby. It's not mud fever, and he had some antibiotic injections from the vet in case it was mites but these haven't worked. Is this just a cobby thing, from the skin on the back of his knee rubbing against itself? any miracle cures out there for this sort of thing??
Any general grooming tips for a hairy cob are greatly appreciated!

here's a photo showing the general scruffiness! please ignore my awful position, he took off a stride early and completely surprised me.
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Can only really comment on the back of knee thingy!! A friend of mines cob suffered really badly with sores on the back of his knees. She had all the usual test and nothing was found. She started applying cream as it was when the scabs were dry that she thought it looked really sore. The cream didn't clear it up but kept it soft. The farrier told her to stop using anything as she was disturbing the healing process, she did and now he is fine!!
 
The double main comes with the type so I think you'll struggle to keep it thin. You could use a tail rake to take some of the hair out from underneath but it will only grow back spiky. I would leave it and just brush it every day which will remove a fair bit of hair anyway. You could just shorten it with a solo comb or razor to keep it tidy. Can do a running plait if you want it out of the way. The tail you could wash, plait and then put in a tail bag to keep it clean. I have made one from fleece which is attached with some velcro through the plait. You can ride in this too so usful when its muddy and keeps poo off.
Th scabby knees (Malanders is the old name I think) is a cob thing and can be made so much worse if you try and get rid of it. I have seen very sore legs as a result of picking at the skin and scrubbing with hibiscrub. Try pig oil and sulpher for his feather and use the pig oil on the back of his knees to keep the dry skin soft so it does not crack (think how painful cracked chapped hands can be) The dead skin that gets stuck in the hair can be gently removed with a dog flea comb but don't be tempted to try and remove any skin still attached.
Your boy looks a handsome chap, traddys are hard work to keep tidy but they do look stunning and its worth the effort. Hope that helps.
 
Thanks so much for the advice! Malanders could well be what he has on his knee.
When I bought him he had mud fever on all 4 legs and both front legs had sore knees. All the mud fever has cleared now, and one knee has completely cleared up, this makes me think that it is not feather mites.
he has occasionally stamped one back leg recently though, which made me think he may have picked up feather mites on a back leg...
He's due to have his legs clipped again though, so I'll be able to have a good look at his legs again.
 
We have a similar type of pony, who also poos down his tail! Don't know the answer other than pulling it really. Ours has sweet itch, and hates anything near his mane. The only thing I can use is the solo comb, which I hate! The mane looks like its pulled when down (I also use a thinning rake daily) but is a nightmare to plait. Due to his sweet itch rug (vital!) he rubs half his mane out anyway! I keep thinking of hogging it, but he suits his mane, and would be a nightmare to clip behind his ears and on his forelock! He is a bit finer than your pony, so doesn't grow too much feather, however a lot of heavier horses have problems with itchy skin around the backs of the knees, and need skin oil rubbing in - so it could be that.. There are so many things it could be that perhaps it would be worth having the vet out and then treating it yourself in future...
 
I've had vets out about the back of his knees, and none seem to know what it is, many think it's just dry skin. I'll see about the solo comb, it may be handy for keeping his mane nice in between pulling sessions.
 
The pig oil and sulpher should help with the itchy legs and is used to prevent mites. If you pm Theresa F on here she has a wealth of good advice re hairy horses. IMO keeping feather on prevents mudfever as it protects the skin.
 
Nothing wrong with a po'hican... I won a showing class with one today, would you believe?

The tail for winter, there is some grease you can put in it to repel dirt, plus you can plait it and put it up for being out in the field.
 
When you pull his mane do a bit at a time. Put a little clove oil (you can get it from the chemist) on the area you are going to pull from to numb the skin. This is an old human toothache remedy - it is safe enough to put in your mouth never mind on your horse. Don't get it on your fingers though as it will numb those too - use cotton wool or something ;)

The hair will also come out more easily after exercise, when the horse is warm.
 
thanks for all the tips! now wondering whether to keep the feather and use pig oil and sulphur on them to keep them clean, and hopefully mite free.....
not sure where I stand on whether feather helps or doesn't with mud fever & feather mites.
 
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